One Country One Priority Product (OCOP)
Theory of Change (ToC)
The Theory of Change (ToC) of the OCOP considers several challenges (drivers for change) which are affecting global agrifood systems today, including a rapidly growing population, increasing food demand, changing consumer patterns, malnutrition, poverty and inequality, and environmental concerns, such as biodiversity loss, soil and land degradation, and climate change. All exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing conflicts, including the war in Ukraine.
The ToC aims to tackle these overarching challenges by addressing main barriers to progress, including a lack of innovative technologies, stagnating yields of major crops and food products, unsustainable agrifood value chains based on just a few crops and animal species, the excessive use of agrochemical inputs, high food losses in the production and post-harvest stages, high greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions resulting in an increasing environmental footprint of agrifood systems, and a lack of awareness among consumers.
Through a range of targeted actions, the ToC of the OCOP foresees to remove these barriers, resulting in a number of outputs, including the development of technical networks for innovation, sustainable technologies, enablers (policies, strategies, and standards) and market access platforms fostering cooperation, and an efficient coordination and collaboration mechanism.
